Zipping through your day, you may find you just want to go home and wind down. Stay disciplined and complete just one more thing. It can be something small that you’ve been trying to finish for weeks. You could also tackle that beast of a project you keep delaying on.
Either way, get one extra thing done each day and you’ll start feeling on top of the world.
You probably could do a few things better than you’re doing them now. Do you want to put the extra effort in though? This is the challenge.
Most of us have the ability and runway and even desire to do more or be better. However, we also can feel lazy, uninspired or wonder what the point is and whether it is worth it at all.
Well it is worth it. Focus on building your discipline every day. It will carry you through the tough times, the doubtful moments and the significant challenges like loss of motivation, purpose or faith.
You can do better. Build up to it. You’ll be so glad you did. And may regret it if you don’t.
If something is moving along reasonably well, tinkering around with it can make things worse as much as they can make things better.
Progress pushed too far can turn into regress. This can be seen particularly well in social settings. If you try to manufacture the world how you would like to have it run, there may be negative consequences beyond a certain point.
This may be some of the reason why we see political parties in power for four to eight years before they are voted out for the opposing group for a similar amount of time.
You can move a patient and accommodating person quite some way along towards your desired endgame. However, just as you gain confidence that you’ll be able to shift them to the end, they may reach a resistance point. And all the progress you thought you made, might start to unwind.
You may find yourself back where you started. Or, perhaps the momentum will take you back past the starting point to places you wished you’d never disturbed.
So sometimes you may be better off with some good progress and leaving it there. In pursuing perfection, you may pay a much higher cost than you could have imagined.
Focus on 1 or 2 things at a time. Discipline yourself to say no to new things if they do not absolutely move your goals forward. Time is at a premium. Don’t waste it on anything that doesn’t improve your life through joy or wealth.
Most people don’t dig too far down. There isn’t time, even if there is sufficient interest. So who ever creates the headline, creates the narrative.
If someone wrote your biography and turned it into a movie, would people watch with interest? Would it lift people up and inspire them to greatness? Or would it be a warning to others to avoid this route at all costs?
Now that you’re thinking about it, you could actually do something about it. If it looks like a positive role model story, well done, keep going! However, if it has flashing red lights and warning labels all over it, perhaps rethink the plan for the next five years and start turning things around.
You can’t force things to be how they were in the past. Accept the change. Direct the future. Live with the new reality.
When considering a concept, I like to reflect on the extremes or both ends of a continuum. I’ve previously written about looking back 200+ years to see the basics of life without the modern noise.
The other end of the continuum is the future. You could say to go a billion years into the future but it doesn’t feel relatable. Six centuries has a nice ring to it and I am sure it is sufficient for most concepts to get a full consideration.
Will the victims of today still be victims in 600 years? Will their offspring and lineage still be beating the same drum of oppression and historical misdeeds?
How many years of relatively exceptional comfort, affluence, societal support, systems, modern conveniences and neutral laws will be required before most or all people recognise that you get what you give?
Will the descendants of the people of today who claim life or society has singled them out and is holding them down, will they feel the same? Even after 12 generations?
What will it take for people to get over any family or historical, perceived or real slight/challenge/disaster and push forward with creating their own better life?
Complaining is easy. Taking hand outs is easy. They can also be understandable for short periods of time. But it should not be a lifestyle.
Put in some effort. Learn a new skill. Apply it. Make more money. Feel the pride of independence. Be the person whose grandchildren are proud of them. Do things that will make your lineage so glad you came before them.
If enough people stopped complaining and made a huge effort to change their own circumstances, there might not be any oppressed victims in 2623.
It’s difficult to achieve worthwhile goals in just 5 minutes. And there are a lot of hurdles and obstacles to get in your way. In addition, almost everything takes longer than you think it will.
So make some bigger, exciting plans 5 years out. You don’t have to know how you’ll get it done. Just commit to doing one thing a day towards achieving each goal. Slowly the end will come into focus and you’ll more rapidly progress to, or beyond, your goal. That is pure magic and joy.
Don’t let contributing factors in your life become determining factors. Sage advice. YOU determine what you want in your life and what you are willing to do to make that happen.
A contributing factor could be a friend calling and distracting you. Don’t let that determine your day. Just let it be a contribution to your day.
check @seancroxton for Myron Golden clip.
